This Delicious Kensington Market Bagel Shop Will Have You Coming Back for More
Have you been to NU Bügel? Right in the heart of Toronto’s Kensington Market, this Venezuelan-Jewish-owned bagel shop will become your go-to for some bagel and schmear.
When the owner, Roberto, first opened NU Bügel, he wanted to change the face of bagels in Toronto – he wanted to “make a good bagel shop, not just in quantity, but in quality too”. I think it’s safe to say he succeeded.
Before we break down the bagel process and get to know NU Bügel better, it’s time for a history lesson. Nothing builds up an appetite like anticipation.
Why Kensington Market?
Roberto loved the Jewish history and heritage of the neighbourhood. For those who don’t know, bagels are a Jewish food – they originated in Polish-Jewish communities. The boiling and baking process of a bagel allows the doughy treat to stay fresh for longer, which was key for the Eastern European Jewish communities who were often poor.
As the Jewish community emigrated and fled from Eastern Europe, they brought their cuisine with them. In the United States, the bagel arrived with Jewish immigrants from Poland in the late 19th century. And while the New York-style bagel is popular, many of those Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe also settled in Toronto and Montreal, each creating their own distinct style of bagel.
I’m sure you’re asking again, what does the history of Kensington Market have to do with a bagel?
Well, before it was called Kensington Market, it was known as the Jewish Market, where Jewish immigrants in Toronto settled and began a life in Canada. These Jewish merchants would build stalls in front of their Kensington homes or convert their ground floor into a business and live above. In fact, by the early 1930’s of the more than 45 thousand Jews who lived in Toronto, 80 per cent of them lived in or around the Kensington area.
It was more than fitting for NU Bügel to open its doors in a neighbourhood with such a connection to Jewish history, selling a food that also has unique ties to the Jewish community.
Enough with the history, let’s sink our teeth into some of these bagels.
For almost a decade, NU Bügel has been serving up fresh, wood fire oven bagels. If you were to ask Roberto, his bagels are neither Montreal-style or New York-style, nor Toronto, but rather a hybrid of all three.
Once the bagel dough is rolled out and shaped, they take a quick splash in a honey-water bath. As soon as they are freshly scooped from the water, the bagel is dropped into its seasoning of choice and covered all over.
Next, the bagels are lined up on a long, wooden stick, which is used as the tool to move the bagel to and from the oven. The stick is also used to shift the bagels within the oven itself. Since NU Bügel uses a wood-fire oven, the cook needs to handle temperature control manually.
This means moving bagels either closer or further away from the fire within the oven as the dough bakes. As a result, each bagel is baked to perfection by hand and cared for to ensure it’s the perfect vessel for your sandwich.
Aside from NU Bügel’s wood-fire oven process, another thing that makes these bagels stand out is the unique seasonings. While you can find the typical everything, sesame and poppy bagels, NU Bügel pulls out all the stops with some other creative flavours including a coconut bagel and a rosemary & sea salt.
The coconut bagel especially has that tropical twist, which is a callback to the Venezuelan roots of this bagel shop. Not only is Roberto from Venezuela, but as is his business partner Roger – in fact, they went to high school together!
In addition to NU Bügel’s stellar bagel game, its house-made cream cheeses make for the perfect schmear. From herbs & garlic cream cheese and sundried tomato cream cheese to chili cilantro cream cheese and roasted red pepper cream cheese, there is something for everyone. Especially the smoked salmon cream cheese, it has the classic bagel, cream cheese and lox all in one.
If you didn’t make it this far in the blog because you put down your phone to run to NU Bügel, I can’t say I blame you. Nothing is better than smelling all those fresh bagels as soon as you enter the store. So, whether you want to make it a special trip or you happen to find yourself in Kensington Market, if you’re a bagel lover like, you won’t be disappointed.